Out of My Head by The Migraine Project is a feature documentary film in the making. We are pursuing the history and mystery of Migraine, and its remarkable place in the human condition.

Migraine is a devastating but fascinating neurological condition with a compelling story to tell. Alice in Wonderland, Vincent Van Gogh, LSD and Elvis all figure into its colorful history.

Our film will take a look at the entertaining details, and the big questions too — like the source and management of illness, the economic cost of human disability, and the nature of pain and suffering — while shining a spotlight on the frontiers of neuroscience and the exploration of the brain.

Most importantly, you will hear courageous and wondrous stories directly from migraineurs.

Join us on our investigative journey! You can tweet us @MigraineProject with migraine news, come back here to see new clips and updates as we post them, and help spread the word about migraine.

Migraine is one of the most pervasive — and least understood — medical conditions to afflict humankind. Widely and inaccurately believed to be just "a really bad headache." It is actually a host of exotic symptoms indicating neurological abnormality in the brain.

Characterized by episodes of blinding, debilitating pain experienced in the head, the onset of Migraine is preceded in 30 percent of adult sufferers by a visual aura (blurred/impaired vision, flashes of light and color), and accompanied in nearly all sufferers by anxiety, nausea, vomiting, and hyper-sensitivity to light. Extreme cases can present with hallucinations, temporary blindness, aphasia, and stroke-like symptoms. It affects over 300 million people worldwide. Three quarters of these sufferers are women.

Worldwide, migraine is the cause of 1.3 per cent of all disability due to illness. In the European Union (EU) alone, the total annual cost of all headache has recently been estimated at 155 billion Euros. Yet the average amount of time spent on headache training in medical school is a total of 3 hours.

There are the statistics, and then there are the real stories of lives impacted by migraine.

This trailer, from our initial interviews, touches on some of the issues our film will cover in depth.

Susanna Styron and Jacki Ochs are award-winning filmmakers whose work has been seen in numerous film festivals including Venice, Tokyo, New York, Los Angeles and Sundance; in broadcast on HBO, PBS, A&E, Discovery, Lifetime and many international networks; and in national theatrical release.

Their most recent collaboration, the feature documentary 9/12: From Chaos to Community was named a "Best Documentary of the Year" by Video Librarian Magazine. It is currently in the collection of hundreds of libraries around the country and was shown widely during the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. The YouTube trailer for "9/12" was until recently the only documentary trailer ever to receive over 2,000,000 views. It has now been surpassed by "Justin Bieber: Never Say Never." Really.

Why We Make Movies

In the course of our careers as filmmakers we have learned that documentary films make a difference. From introducing a new subject to audiences, to impacting legislation, a powerful film coupled with determination and strategic outreach builds community and voices for change.

We invite you to join us on this important journey as we seek to inspire greater compassion for migraineurs and increased support for research within the scientific community.

Advocacy

• AHDA (Alliance for Headache Advocacy): comprised of nonprofit organizations who are vitally concerned about the health of patients with headache disorders.
• American Headache Society: a professional society of health care providers dedicated to the study and treatment of headache and face pain.
• American Migraine Foundation: is dedicated to the advancement of Migraine research.
• International Headache Society: IHS is the world's leading membership organisation for those with a professional commitment to helping people affected by headache.
• Migraine Research Foundation: is dedicated to ending the debilitating pain of migraine through the funding of innovative research.

Support Community

• Migraine.com: online community of experts and patients dedicated exclusively to migraines.
• Miles for Migraine: an annual walk/run fundraiser to support migraine and headache awareness.
• National Headache Foundation: the most comprehensive information on headache and migraine, and the world's largest voluntary organization for the support of headache sufferers.